Zupco doubles fares, reduces number of buses in Chi-town

Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco) has reduced its fleet of buses plying the Harare to Chitungwiza route.
The company has also doubled its fares by 100 percent, something that has been condemned by opposition political parties as being anti-poor.
Officials at the company said the cutting down of the fleet was necessitated by the need to reduce its active workforce following introduction of the Level 4 lockdown in the country a few weeks ago.
Passengers are now having to wait for long hours in queues – causing massive disruption to the smooth movement of people.
A Zupco employee who preferred anonymity told Nhau that Chitungwiza Depot had grounded three quarters of its fleet.
“Our depot is not fully functional, for now we are working in shifts as many of the buses are parked,” revealed the source.
A survey by Nhau revealed that passengers, mostly essential service providers, are having to wait for long hours because of the shortage of transport.
Zupco buses are the only public transport allowed by authorities to operate after the ban of private commuter omnibus (kombis).
Ms Sikhanyisiwe Ncube, Zupco’s marketing and public relations officer, told Nhau that the national lockdown meant only a few people could travel, hence the decision to reduce the number of buses on the road.
“…this means low patronage on our services thereby the need to scale down so that the we can accommodate a limited number of passengers in respect of Covid-19 protocols,” Ncube said.
“We, however, urge the commuting public to make use of the designated pick up points so that our buses do not obstruct other vehicles when picking up passengers.” Nhau/Indaba